Savior
by Tres Elegante
Summary: Sora's been crying himself to sleep for four years, depressed over the absence of his best friend. When Riku comes back, will they admit their feelings of love? Or will another man come between them? RikuSora LeonSora LeonCloud
1. Stolen Kisses

**Author's notes: **Hello, anyone and everyone who is reading this. This chapter was completely edited on March 30, '06 from when it was first posted in August '05 due to… dissatisfaction on the author's behalf. Constructive criticism is welcome. Flames aren't encouraged, nor do they bother me, but I just don't see the point in giving one. If you really do feel the need to flame, then please, go right ahead. Don't let me hold you back.

**Disclaimers: **I'm not making any money off of this fanfiction. Square Enix and Disney own Kingdom Hearts. LArcEnCiel owns the song "Kuchizuke/Kisses" (the song that Cloud's singing in the shower).

**Warnings: **This fanfiction contains yaoi, adult humor, sexual situations, angst, fluff, and foul language.

* * *

_This was an accident,  
Not the kind where sirens sound.  
Never even noticed,  
We're suddenly crumbling. _

Tell me how you've never felt  
Delicate or innocent.  
Do you still have doubts that  
Us having faith makes any sense?

Tell me nothing ever counts,  
Lashing out or breaking down.  
Still somebody loses 'cause  
There's no way to turn around.

Staring at your photograph,  
Everything now in the past  
Never felt so lonely, I  
Wish that you could show me love.

Show me love, show me love, show me love,  
Show me love, show me love  
'Til you open the door.

Show me love, show me love, show me love,  
Show me love, show me love,  
'Til I'm up off the floor.

Show me love, show me love show me love,  
Show me love, show me love,  
'Til it's inside my pores.

Show me love, show me love, show me love,  
Show me love, show me love,  
'Til I'm screaming for more.

Random acts of mindlessness,  
Commonplace occurrences,  
Chances and surprises,  
Another state of consciousness.

Tell me nothing ever counts,  
Lashing out or breaking down.  
Still somebody loses 'cause  
There's no way to turn around.

Tell me how you've never felt  
Delicate or innocent.  
Do you still have doubts that  
Us having faith makes any sense?

You play games, I play tricks.  
Girls and girls, but you're the one  
Like a game of pick-up sticks  
Played by fucking lunatics.

Show me love, show me love  
Give me all that I want.  
Show me love, Show me love  
'Til I'm screaming for more.

**Show me Love** – t.A.T.u.

-

-

**_Savior_  
Chapter One  
Stolen Kisses**

-

-

"I miss you, Riiku…" breathed a cinnamon-haired teenaged boy through tears. Tears that he had been holding back all day; alas, now it was finally night, everyone had gone to sleep, and he could finally cry. It had become routine for this eighteen-year-old to cry himself to sleep as he called out his old friend's name. Hoping, if he called his name enough, that he would hear him and come back to Destiny Islands.

His lower lip jutted out in a small pout and quivered as more sobs escaped him. A small teardrop ran down his forlorn face, landing on the picture frame that he held in his hands. In this delicate frame was a photograph of a silver-haired boy, who looked as if he couldn't be older than 15. He was wearing a tight yellow muscle shirt with two crisscrossing black lines over the chest, and he wore a mischievous grin on his pale lips. The picture of this boy, Riku, was taken shortly before the Heartless invaded Destiny Islands four years ago. Right before the door to all of the other worlds had been open.

"Why?" he spluttered out through a fresh torrent of tears. "Why did you have to get locked in Kingdom Hearts and leave me all alone? Why, Riku, _why_…?" He felt his shoulders shake as he heaved another sob, wishing that his old friend would escape from Kingdom Hearts and find his way back to Destiny Islands. Praying, that somehow, he and Riku would be united once again.

The young brunette hugged the picture frame to his chest once more before setting it back on the nightstand, its resting-place during the day. After he had carefully placed the picture back, he then buried his tearstained face into his pillow as he cried himself to sleep, a bad habit that he had gotten into the night he and Riku got separated.

- - - - -

'_I miss you, Riiku…'_ the words ate away at the silver-haired boy's heart. Tears came to his eyes and left a stinging feeling in his chest; Sora was crying himself to sleep again. _Because of _me "I miss you, too, Sora…" he whispered, placing his hand over his chest. "Don't fret anymore… I'm coming home soon." A tear silently rolled out of an aquamarine eye and down his face, landing on the cold ground in front of him. He hated knowing that it was because of _him_ that the love of his life was shedding these tears. That it was because of _him_ that Sora cried himself to sleep. "Please don't cry anymore, Sora… I'll be home sooner than you think."

- - - - -

A blonde man clad in loose, blue pants fumbled with the door to his apartment, his lips never leaving the dark haired man's that they were attached to. He groaned inwardly as their tongues brushed against each other as he continued attempting to kiss his companion and unlock the door at the same time. Warm hands found their way into his midnight shirt and began to slowly crawl up his finely chiseled torso, eliciting a moan from the light haired man.

Still trying to keep his lips on the brunette's and open the door at the same time, he cursed to himself as he decided that he would have to break the kiss if he ever wanted to get into his apartment. Reluctantly tearing his lips away from the other man's, he mumbled, "Damn door…" He slid the key into the lock and turned it, causing a small "click" to be heard. He pushed the door open and walked in, the brunette man following closely after him.

"Sorry about that, Squall," he apologized as he closed the beat-up wooden door behind them. He flicked a switch on, and light exploded from the overhead lamp, revealing a neatly kept kitchen. "That door can be _impossible_ someti—" Leon cut him off with a kiss—a slight brush of the lips, if you will—and then pulled away.

"Shut up," he said as his lips met Cloud's again, harder this time. His Mako blue eyes shut when Leon pushed him up against the wall, brushing his tongue along his bottom lip, asking for access to his delicious mouth.

Access that Cloud was more than happy to grant Leon.

He parted his lips, allowing Leon to kiss him for what definitely wasn't the first time in their friendship. The ends of Cloud's mouth curved up slightly into a soft smile as he felt Leon's rough hands begin to unbuckle one his belts almost expertly, which was to be expected…

After all, he _had_ had a lot of practice in taking them off.

Cloud couldn't help the groan of protest that escaped his lips as his brunette friend broke their kiss in order to concentrate more on undressing him; sure. "You wear too many belts," he commented in a frustrated manner as he threw the second one onto the kitchen table.

"_Me_?" Cloud fired back, his amused eyes glaring at Leon, who had just finished unbuckling the third and final belt. "That's funny coming from _you_, of all people."

The older man growled and his mouth opened to respond, but was interrupted by the ringing of a cell phone attached to his hip. Leon pulled it off of the lip and glanced at the caller ID before answering; it was Cid. He immediately flipped open the cell phone and brought it up to his ear. "Hello?" he answered while holding a finger up to Cloud, signaling that it was an important call. "Uh-huh. What? Of course. I'll be right over." He turned to the man beside him with a slight smile on his soft lips.

"What's up with the smile?" asked the blonde-haired man in a confused tone, eyeing a very silent, smiling Leon. "Stop it, Squall, you're really starting to creep me out."

Leon glanced into Cloud's eyes for what couldn't have been any longer than a second. "He finished it." And with those last words, Leon was already on his way out of Cloud's apartment. Opening the beat-up door, he turned back just once with an anxious look worn on his breath-taking features, muttering words of apology – "Sorry, Cloud. I'll call you." – and slam. Just like that, he was already on his way down the stairs and out the front door.

The spiky-haired blonde sighed, exasperated, as he walked over to the kitchen table and picked up his leather belts. Damn Cid and that gummi ship of his, always taking Leon away from him.

Just when things were about to get interesting, too.

He felt a wave of confusion and anguish wash over him as he began to ponder his and Leon's friendlier-than-friendly-friendship. That's all it was; friendship. _Just_ friendship. Leon and Cloud were just friends. Who happened to be extremely attracted to one another... And did sexual things together… But have never gone "all the way"… yet. Not that Cloud even knew if they would ever take that giant step. They had only been _friendly_ friends for three weeks, so maybe they eventually would do "it", but he didn't know.

And quite frankly, he didn't want to know.

It had taken him months to finally admit that he was physically attracted to the Gunblade expert, another male, and he was still unsure of so many things. Despite all of the confusing emotions that were taking hold of him, he would always hold this truth to be self-evident: he was straight.

…Right? At least that's what he convinced himself.

Cloud sighed deeply as he rubbed his temples, attempting to rid himself of the throbbing pain in his head. _I really need to stop thinking so much about this before I give myself an aneurysm._

- - - - -

Leon ran his rough, manly hands through his long, brown hair. His skintight shirt clung to his well-toned muscles sensually, the shade of black looking very attractive against his naturally bronze skin. The dimly lit room in which he stood was silent except for the sound of Cid putting the finishing touches on a gummi ship. A very important one that Leon had asked him to build four years ago, when the door that connected all of the worlds had been closed and locked.

Ensuring that he would never see Sora again.

Leon had to admit, the fact that he and Sora wouldn't ever meet again had hardly bothered him – at first, anyway. Sure, he was like the kid brother Leon never had, but he knew it was for the best that Sora go back to Destiny Islands, and that he to Traverse Town. He looked at it as something that couldn't be avoided nor prevented, so he just accepted and got over it the same day they had parted.

But as night fell, he was plagued with nightmares of a hysterical Sora, covers wrapped around his shaking shoulders as tears streamed down his slightly swollen face. Leon had wanted to comfort him, to reach out, to tell him that everything would be all right, but he couldn't. No matter how loud he yelled, Sora couldn't hear his voice. No matter how far he reached, Sora couldn't feel his touch. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't comfort Sora.

That night, Leon had awoken abruptly with a stinging feeling in his heart. He had just brushed it off then, figuring that it was just some nightmare that didn't mean anything. But when that very same nightmare came back to haunt his sleep every day for the next week, he knew that something wasn't right. The Gunblade expert had a sinking feeling that Sora had been crying himself to sleep over gods-knows-what for an entire week, and that there wasn't anything he could do about it.

Until he could find a gummi ship that could take him to Destiny Islands, anyway.

One week after the nightmares first started, he had gone to Cid and offered him 25,000 munny if he could build a gummi ship that could travel to other worlds, even though the door that connected them all had been shut. At first, the older man had told Leon that it wasn't possible without opening the door again, meaning that they needed the keyblade and its master; plus, even if Sora and the keyblade _were_ there, if the door was opened, Heartless would invade all of the worlds again. That wouldn't have done anyone _any_ good, even if it meant that Leon would finally be able to comfort Sora.

Three years later, long after Leon had given up on ever seeing Sora again, Cid came to him and told him that he had found a way to build a gummi ship that could surpass the door without opening it. When Leon had asked how, he explained that he had found a rare invincibility gummi block that would be able to mask the ship, making it quite possible for the brunette to travel to Destiny Islands _without_ opening any doors. Cid had then explained that it would take at least eight months to build this gummi ship, but Leon didn't care; as long as he could finally get to the bottom of _why_ Sora had been crying for all those years, it would be worth the wait.

Now, exactly four years after Leon had started having those visions of Sora, Cid had called Leon and told him to come over right away because he had finished it. _He had finished it_ After four long years of grueling nightmares, Leon would _finally_ be able to find out why poor Sora had been crying non-stop. He would leave the next day, and he could hardly wait.

- - - - -

"Nnnn…" Sora groaned as the morning sun shone brightly through the rather large windows in his room. His sapphire blue orbs glanced at his alarm clock; 8:45 a.m. _Ugh, it's still early_, thought Sora in an annoyed fashion. He rolled over on his stomach, his arms and legs extending out as he arched his back, stretching his sore muscles.

The result from staying up the whole night – crying.

After getting the most he could out if it, he let his muscles slowly relax as he lazily got out of bed, taking his sweet 'ol time._ I'm afraid to look in the mirror,_ he thought to himself and winced, setting his feet on the floor and glancing at his reflection in the mirror that lay across from his bed and above his bureau. A heavy sigh escaped him at the sight of his bloodshot eyes and red face.

The result from staying up the whole night – crying.

Sora slowly lifted himself up and off of his comfortable bed, making his way over to his bathroom in order to begin his morning routine; take a shower, brush teeth, get dressed, attempt (and fail) to fix hair, eat. Then maybe Kairi will come over or something of the sort. Sora felt himself fill with dread at the thought of Kairi coming over. He liked the sweet redhead as a _friend_, but yesterday she had asked him out on a date. Of course, he had turned her down lightly, not wanting to hurt the poor girl's feelings, but she cried none-the-less. It made his heart ache at the sight of his one of his closest friends in tears because of him, but what could he do about it? He felt nothing for Kairi except for friendship, and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

Putting those troublesome thoughts behind him, Sora slipped out of his boxers and stepped into the shower. He turned the knob all the way to the left, allowing hot water to pour out of the showerhead and onto his body's front. He groaned softly at the impact, loving the way the boiling water felt against his cool skin. Sora reached for the shampoo bottle, squeezed its contents into his hand, and lathered it into his now-wet hair. He slipped under the weeping showerhead, letting the water rinse the shampoo out of his hair. Seizing a wash cloth, he ran it under the piping hot water, soaped it up, and began scrubbing. Sora went back under the showerhead, the running water washing the soap off of his beautifully lithe body. After all of the soap was rinsed off, he grabbed his toothbrush, squirted some toothpaste onto it, and brushed his naturally straight teeth.

When he was done, he twisted the knob back to the right, and the running water came to a reluctant stop. Sora stepped out, grabbed his towel, and dried his dripping body off. Throwing the damp towel in the hamper, he then walked out of his bathroom, wearing nothing but a slight frown on his face. As he entered his bedroom, his eyes immediately fell on an unexpected visitor sitting on his bed, waiting to greet Sora in all of his glory. He felt his face grow hot as a pair of stormy gray eyes traveled down the length of his taut torso on down until they settled on his manhood, and, a little reluctantly, back up again, finally locking his gaze with Sora's.

The young brunette gasped, forgetting all about his naked form for the time being. _It can't be…_ "Le… Leon?" _…can it?_

An arch of his eyebrows. "Who else?"

"How…?" breathed the cinnamon-haired boy, his beautiful blue eyes wide in disbelief. "I thought you were in Traverse Town…" _How the hell did Leon get here…!_

"I was," came Leon's simple reply as his eyes flickered downwards again, unable to resist the inviting temptation. When Sora realized where the older man's eyes were fixed, the red-faced boy scrambled back into the bathroom and emerged with a towel wrapped around his slim waist.

"Sorry…" the younger brunette murmered, turning his back to Leon as he searched the drawers in his bureau for something to wear. His hands felt shaky and his head light as he felt those intense gray eyes watching his every move.

"Don't be," replied the older male indifferently, and Sora saw him wave his hand dismissively in the mirror.

The cinnamon-haired teen nodded. "I'm curious about something, though," Sora began, stepping into the bathroom with a handful of his clothes, "how did you get here? I thought that the door couldn't be opened without the keyblade and its master?"

"That's what Cid told me when I first asked about it," Leon informed him as he studied the bedroom he was currently in. His eyes stopped on a picture of a smiling silver-haired boy that was set on the end table next to Sora's bed. _This must be Riku._ The Gunblade expert couldn't help but pick up the frame and study the boy further. "But a few years after that, he told me that he found this weird gummi block that would let me get here without opening the door. It was some rare invincibility block or some shit like that…" His voice trailed off as he looked deeper at the picture.

The boy in the picture wore a mischievous smirk on his lips, silently informing all of those around him that he loved adventure and was always up for a challenge. His aqua eyes were smiling as well, emitting a youthful light, as if to dare you to guess what crazy thing he had planned for the day. Leon rolled his eyes at the cocky attitude that Riku obviously possessed. _Punk._

The sound of the bathroom door opening snapped him out of his thoughts and he looked up from the frame in his hands. There stood Sora in a pair of khaki boy shorts and a white t-shirt. His hair clung to his face, still wet from the shower he had just gotten out of. A gold chain was fastened securely around his neck, giving him the appearance of a normal eighteen-year-old third-year in high school. The brunette man's voice got caught in his throat when he saw how beautiful Sora was, and he didn't know what to say.

The teenaged boy took Leon's breath away.

"That's Riku," Sora informed him, walking across the room and taking a seat next to Leon on his bed. He looked over the brunette man's shoulder and stared at the picture, oblivious to how the older man was looking at him. _C'mon, don't cry…_he inhaled sharply, swallowing a sob that threatened to betray his calm composure by leaving his throat. Seeing Riku's picture always made Sora cry; hell, _thinking_ about his lost friend brought tears to his eyes.

"I thought as much," Leon began in his usual monotonous tone, but it was forced; he was still awestruck by the younger male.

The cinnamon-haired boy blinked back his tears and looked away from the photograph, careful not to make eye contact with Leon. "How?" he asked shakily, fighting with everything he had to keep his voice from cracking.

"I don't know," Leon responded with a shrug as he continued to stare intently at the picture. He was so concentrated on it that he didn't hear the sob that escaped the boy next to him. "Just something about him, I guess." His gray eyes moved from the picture and he turned his head to look at Sora, and his heart ached at the scene before his eyes. A torrent of tears were streaming down the cinnamon-haired boy's swollen face and he tried to wipe them all away, attempting to hide his hysterical state from Leon. "What's wrong, Sora?" Leon asked as he pulled the crying teenager into his arms, engulfing him in a tight hug. In response to the question, Sora just sobbed harder into Leon's chest, tears rolling out of his eyes, down his face, and onto the older man's muscle shirt.

"Shh…" whispered Leon, stroking Sora's wet locks soothingly. _So this is the reason for his crying himself to sleep…_ he thought, sympathy eating away at his heart for the third-year in high school. _He's been crying because of Riku._ "Shh, Sora, it's okay…" The sound of hysterical sobs and sweet, soothing words being whispered echoed throughout the otherwise quiet room as Leon cradled Sora in his strong arms.

The two stayed like this for some time; Sora on Leon's lap, sobbing into his chest as the older man attempted to calm the poor boy. Five minutes had passed before Sora could finally regain his composure enough to speak. He lightly lifted his head off of Leon's chest and gazed up into cold gray eyes, cheeks red from tears and embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Le-Leon," he breathed, fresh tears slipping out of his eyes and down his swollen face. "I'm such a wimp…" The Gunblade expert could physically feel pain in his chest at hearing his pathetic words, and he finally just lost control. Without hesitation, he pulled Sora up and onto his chest, lightly licking at his tearstained cheeks.

"Le-Leon!" the cinnamon-haired boy gasped at Leon's abrupt actions. "What are you doing?"

Leon's lips replaced his tongue as he ignored Sora's question, placing slight kisses along his jaw line until his lips met Sora's in a sweet, sweet kiss. Sora closed his eyes and felt Leon's tongue brush along his bottom lip, demanding entrance to his mouth. Without thinking, the young teen gave in, allowing the older brunette's warm tongue to delve deep in, tasting, relishing, and exploring the haven that was Sora's mouth.

"Nnn…" Sora moaned in satisfaction as Leon's tongue brushed against his, loving the beautiful sensation that this man was allowing him to feel. The Gunblade expert's hands found their way into Sora's damp hair, and he idly ran his fingers through the silk-like strands as he deepened the kisss, desperate for his taste. As he felt his hands slipping under the teenaged boy's t-shirt and running along his smooth, built torso, Sora's gasp snapped the older male out of his pleasurable haze.

He quickly tore his lips away from the teenaged boy's when he realized what he was doing. _What the fuck is wrong with me?_ Leon silently wondered as he stared into Sora's shocked blue eyes, a light blush tinting his cheeks. _Shit, I fucked up big time._ "I should go," he said in a rushed tone as he briskly got up and started walking out Sora's bedroom door. "Cloud's waiting for me at the Sands Hotel. We'll stop by sometime around seven, if that's all right with you?" The teenaged boy nodded his head, eyes still wide from what they had just done. "Okay, I'll see you later then." And just like that, he was closing the bedroom door behind him as he headed down the stairs and out of Sora's house, leaving the wet-haired brunette alone with his thoughts.

_That was…crazy_, Sora thought to himself as he brought his soft hands to touch his trembling lips. _And it was with a _guy_… Not with a girl, like every other normal teenaged boy out there, but with a _guy…He exhaled sharply as he sprawled himself out on his bed, staring up at his ceiling as he put his hands behind his head. _What is wrong with me! And I actually liked it…! If this doesn't scream 'gay', then I don't know what does…_ Though Sora was very bewildered about the whole thing, he couldn't deny the fact that this wasn't his first kiss with a guy. When he and Riku were twelve, the two had "practiced" kissing each other so that Riku would know what he was doing when he kissed his little girlfriend. _But still_, Sora reasoned, _even that was just so that Riku would be good when he kissed whats-her-name._

He glanced out the window and saw Leon walking down the sandy road. _It's an unbelievably beautiful day out,_ he realized as the older man made a left and disappeared from sight. _I should go to the beach._

With that decision made, the brunette swung his legs around the bed and walked into his bathroom. Pulling off his khaki shorts and boxers, Sora put on his swim trunks and walked out of his bedroom, silently closing the door behind him. He walked down the staircase, through the hallway and into the kitchen. The eighteen-year-old knew his mother wouldn't be there; she was off to God-only-knows-where with her boyfriend on a "business trip" for the summer. He grabbed a frozen waffle out of the freezer and placed it in the microwave for thirty seconds in order for it to thaw enough for him to eat. When it beeped, he pulled it out and began eating it plain and still slightly frozen – just how he liked it.

Sora seized his ring of keys off of the table and stuck it in the pocket of his swim trunks. He gulped down the last bite of frozen waffle and slipped on his sandals. The brunette opened the door and saw Kairi walking up the sandy walkway that led to his house, her head looking forward with a smile worn on her lips. "Hey, Sora," she greeted shyly as she continued walking towards him. "Going to the beach?"

The spiky-haired boy closed and locked the door. "Yeah," he responded as he turned around to face the redheaded beauty. Her long, straight hair blew in the wind, and her white bikini top looked a little too tight for comfort, complimenting her good figure nicely. Sora honestly didn't know why he didn't want to be anything more than friends with Kairi. Every guy on Destiny Islands would kill to be in his situation, but what could he do? She would always be just Kairi to him, drop dead gorgeous or no. "And from the looks of it, so are you."

She giggled. "So you noticed," she responded with a smile.

Sora smiled back. It seemed as if Kairi had already gotten over his rejecting her date yesterday. And for that, the teenaged boy was thankful; he'd hate for things to suddenly get weird around him and Kairi, one of his nearest and dearest friends. "Let's go then," the spiky-haired boy told her and stuck his key ring in his back pocket. He turned to her with a mischievous smirk. "I'll race you." And with that, he took off towards the beach like a speeding bullet.

"Hey!" Kairi shouted as she began chasing after him. "That's so unfair!"

Sora continued running as fast as his legs could carry him. He was so thankful he had Kairi to keep his mind off of the kiss that he had just shared with Leon. With Kairi, he could forget about it for the time being and focus on having fun, which is something he didn't have enough of. In a few short seconds, Kairi had already caught up with Sora and was running directly beside him. She turned her head towards him and stuck her tongue out at him. Sora pretended to scowl as the redhead ran ahead, and started running even faster, so he was next to the redhead in no time. "Nyah!" he shouted and smiled at Kairi's angry expression. His legs worked faster and he sped up ahead of his friend, leaving her with a false sneer on her face.

After another minute of head-to-head racing, the two friends had arrived at the secluded beach area. "I won," Kairi panted, putting her hands on her knees in an exasperated fashion.

"No way!" Sora gasped back, clutching his chest. "I won!" The brunette boy fell to the sandy ground.

"Fine," Kairi replied, falling next to the teenaged boy. "It was. A tie."

Sora nodded his head as his spiky locks bobbed up and down now that they were fully dry. "Fine."

The two friends lie on their backs for another minute or so panting, recovering from the race they had just finished. "Sora," Kairi's voice said suddenly, her violet blue eyes looking up at the sky, "I passed a guy that looked _just_ like Leon today on my way to your house. Isn't that weird?" She glanced over at Sora, who had a deep red blush on his face. _Hm,_ thought Kairi, her eyes locked on his red cheeks. _Odd_.

"Oh, uh, really?" Sora mumbled, keeping his ocean blue eyes on the sky. "That's, um, weird." _Fuck, my blush is totally giving off weird signs._ Sora silently cursed himself for being so damn obvious all the time._ Now Kairi's gonna think that something _weird_ happened! _Granted, something "weird" did happen, but like Kairi needed to know that.

The redhead narrowed her eyes suspiciously. _Something's definitely up._ "Hey, Sora?" she called, trying to get the shy boy to look into her eyes. His eyes were the one thing that gave away what he was feeling more than anything else.

"Y-Yes, Kairi?" He gulped, avoiding her eyes and looking at the sand that surrounded them.

"Was that guy I walked past earlier actually _Leon_?" she asked, noting the nervousness detected in her friend's movements. "Y'know, the one from Traverse Town?" Sora shook his head no, his blue orbs never leaving the sand. Kairi's violet blue eyes narrowed again; she didn't buy that for a second. "Look me in the eyes and tell me that that wasn't Squall Leonhart from Traverse Town."

Sora reluctantly tore his eyes away from the sand they were previously on and gazed into Kairi's beautiful violet orbs. "That wasn't Squ-Squall Leonhart from uhh, Traverse Town," he lied horribly, not fooling anyone.

Kairi giggled, finding his tried lie terribly cute. "Sora, you are _such_ a bad liar," she told him, propping herself up on her elbows as she glanced down at a beet-faced Sora. "So, why was Leon here? Better yet, _how_ did he get here?"

Sora shrugged, not wanting to reveal to Kairi that he had been crying himself to sleep since the night Riku got trapped inside Kingdom Hearts. _Riku…_ his thoughts of the trapped teenaged boy came back to his mind and he tried his hardest to refrain from crying. "He said something about an invincibility gummi block," Sora responded as he tried to sound nonchalant, lying down on his back and staring at the passing clouds.

"Oh, okay," Kairi responded, a suspicious look still worn on her girly features. "So, why were you so embarassed about telling me that Leon went over your house, anyway?"

The blush appeared on the blue-eyed boy immediately after Kairi finished asking yet another question. _Damn you and your questions,_ thought Sora in annoyed manner. "What is this, twenty questions?" he mumbled, his gaze yet again glued to the sand.

Kairi giggled. "Yup," she responded with a smile worn plainly on her red lips. "And now you have to answer this one. C'mon, out with it. Why didn't you wanna tell me that Leon was over your house?"

The brunette boy was silent for a few moments, trying to find the right words to lie with. If this were anyone other than Kairi he would've told them it wasn't any of their concern, but since it was his redheaded friend, he had no other choice _but_ to tell her something; he just didn't know what. Sora quickly racked his brain, trying to think of a good reason why he wouldn't want to tell Kairi that Leon was over his house. They had made out and he didn't want to tell her because she'd think he was gay? _Hell_ no. He had short-term memory loss? Nah. He thought she wouldn't believe him if he told her?

Perfect.

"I uh," he began, moving his gaze from the sandy beach to Kairi's eyes, attempting to give her a smile, "I thought you wouldn't believe me?" _Shit_. It came out sounding like more like a question than a statement. Why did he have to be such a bad liar?

Kairi rolled her eyes. Sora _obviously_ didn't want her to know about whatever went on while Leon was there, so why push the matter any further if it would take her nowhere? "If you say so, Sora," she mumbled, annoyed that he didn't want to divulge this important information to her.

The cinnamon-haired teen's eyes lit up; Kairi believed him! Maybe he was pretty good at lying after all. He lifted himself off the ground and looked at the redhead that lay before him. "Are you just gonna lie there while I have all the fun by myself?" he asked her as he took off his white t-shirt. He began running towards the ocean and turned his head back at Kairi, who was still relaxing in the sand. "C'mon!" At that, the redhead gave in and stood up, stepping out of her white shorts as she ran after Sora and into the beautifully clear ocean.

- - - - -

"I'm back," called Leon as he entered the hotel room that the two men shared. He closed and locked the door behind him and set the room card on an end table. His eyes scanned the empty hotel room, looking for his blonde-haired friend. "Cloud?" His ears perked up as the sound of running water echoed throughout the room. Leon glanced at the bathroom and noticed that the light was on; he was immediately aware of what Cloud was doing. The brunette kicked off his shoes and began unbuckling the belts that hung on his leather pants. In a few fluid motions, the belts were off and lay in a pile at his feet; Leon worked fast when he was aroused.

He shrugged out of his leather half-jacket, letting it fall to the ground with the rest of his accessories. The brunette took the silver necklace that hung around his neck in his gloved hands and carefully placed it on the dresser, not wanting to lose one of his favorite pieces of jewelry. Leon pulled his white muscle shirt over his head and tossed it to the wooden floor, letting it pool at the area around his feet. The Gunblade expert then unbuttoned the tight leather pants he was squeezed into, exposing his erection to the cool air of the hotel room. He felt a shiver run throughout his body at the cool air hitting his otherwise warm arousal. Stepping out of his pants, he unbuckled the brown leather bracelets that resembled small belts around his muscular forearms. And last but not least, he took off his black gloves and threw them on the bureau.

Finally relieved of all of his garments, he casually walked over to the bathroom and opened the door, only to be greeted by a melodious voice. Ahh, what a beautiful voice it was. "As you're tossing out lies, you avoid my kisses. And you're burning with desire, give in to me," the voice sang beautifully, almost seductively, as if he were trying to allure some unsuspecting victim into bed. _Is that Cloud…?_ Leon wondered, silently closing the door behind him. The brunette man opened the shower curtain, revealing a gracefully slender body, ebony wings jutting out from a lithe back. "And I feel it, your desire, show me now."

"As you wish." The blonde quickly turned around, startled to find Leon standing there, stark naked. _Gods…_ thought the Gunblade expert as he looked over Cloud's beautiful body, appreciating his loveliness, _he's so fucking beautiful._

"Squ-Squall!" gasped Cloud, Mako blue eyes wide with surprise. He instinctively covered up his crotch with a wash rag. "I-I didn't expect you to be back so soon!"

Leon raised an eyebrow at the spiky-haired blonde's jumpy movements, ignoring the name that Cloud addressed him as. "You act like I've never seen you naked before," he responded simply as he put one foot in the bathtub, and then another. His rough hands reached for the wash cloth covering Cloud's manhood, pulling it away so he could fully appreciate his partner in all of his glory. A lustful expression appeared on Leon's face as he hungrily took in the ravishing image before him. "That's more like it." A blush spread across Cloud's cheeks at the brunette's actions.

"What… what are you doing in here? I mean, I could wait in the room if you want to take a shower or something, I really don't mind…" the blonde rambled on shyly to Leon, who obviously wasn't listening. Stormy orbs glanced downwards at firm nipples. _Cloud's weakness._ Cloud sighed and turned his head to the side, unaware of the smooth hands that were becoming increasingly close to his body. "You can be so perverted sometiiii…!" A tweak of his hardened nipples concluded Cloud's complaints on a rather happy note. The serious look on Leon's face never wavered as he gazed heatedly into the blonde's Mako blue eyes, his hands slipping further and further downwards until… "Squall…! W-Why down there!"

"You're saying you don't like it?" He gave Cloud's testicles a firm squeeze, eliciting a moan from the blonde as he slowly shook his head no. "Is that a 'yes, I love it' or a 'no, I hate it'?"

_You know damn right well what the answer is,_ thought Cloud, glaring at Leon through lust-filled Mako orbs. An annoyed look found its way onto his face, replacing the frightened expression he had worn just a moment earlier.

Leon raised his eyebrows. "I'll take that as a yes." Ignoring Cloud's Look of Death, he continued where he left off. Running his tongue along Cloud's firm abdominal muscles, he felt him shudder as the precious pink muscle delved deep into his navel, making the blonde go crazy with pleasure. Leon's tongue escaped Cloud's small navel and began traveling back down the rest of the blonde's delicious body, not hesitating in the least when he reached his throbbing length. Instead, he continued licking his friend from head-to-toe, his tongue swirling up and down the sizable shaft at an annoying slow pace. He was careful not to scrape the sensitive flesh with his teeth as his head moved back up again, lightly sucking Cloud's erection, causing the blonde man to moan. "Mmm… _Ahh_!" The blonde threw his head back in pleasure, attempting to buck his hips but was held down by Leon's rough hands. "Squall!" he huffed as he tried and failed to buck his hips a second time.

"Not yet," came the gruff brunette's reply as he continued to give pleasure to his friend, running his long, pink tongue back up the length of Cloud's cock, enjoying every second of tasting the delirious man. How could he _not_ be delirious? Leon's suckling, nipping, and licking all of the right spots _over_ and _over_ again, his hands still firmly glued to Cloud's hips; it was impossible to _not_ be in a haze when Leon was the one giving you a blow job.

And then finally, just when the pain of being unable to release had almost become too much to bear, Leon swallowed him whole and released his tight grip on the poor man's hips, allowing him to buck as hard and fast as he wanted to. _Thank you!_ thought Cloud gratefully, thrusting his swollen member inside of Leon's mouth, absolutely _loving_ the way the hot, wet sanctuary felt surrounding and sucking on his hard arousal. "Mmf…!" he groaned in a low voice, trying to hold back his screams of pleasure. Immediately noticing that Cloud was trying to be quiet, Leon pulled his lips off of his friend's manhood. "Squall! What the **fuck**?"

"Scream my name," he told him firmly, his eyes glancing upward into Cloud's half-lidded ones. "I'm the only one here, Cloud; the only one enjoying this – enjoying _you_ – so don't hold anything back." His face felt hotter than before due to his shy yet eager feelings as he waited for Leon to continue, but the brunette's position didn't change. "Got it?"

"Yes!" he shouted desperately. "Now _come the fuck on_, please!"

Leon found this very encouraging, and just as soon as he had stopped, the brunette had started again; slowly bobbing his head up and down, his mouth blowing and sucking the length of Cloud's shaft, pushing him to scream his name _over_ and _over_ again. Leon resisted the urge to gag as the spiky-haired blonde suddenly bucked his hips more desperately, obviously nearing his climax. Cloud's thrusts became faster and harder, his head thrown back in ecstasy as the brown-haired sex god deep-throated him. _I…I should warn him!_ "Squall, I'm going to – _ahh_!" It was too late; his orgasm had already arrived and his seed was spilling out of his arousal and into Leon's mouth at an extremely fast pace. Cloud's supple body shook wildly as his seed spilled out of his cock, the Gunblade expert swallowing without hesitation.

The last drop slipping down his throat, Leon's lips left the blonde's manhood and he stood up, kissing the blonde passionately on his swollen lips. Cloud opened his mouth, welcoming Leon's fast-moving tongue with open arms. Their lips pulled apart and Cloud sighed, hazy still from the pleasure he had just experienced. _Leon's so good at this kind of stuff…_ he thought, gazing dreamily into Leon's eyes. _I can't help but feel inexperienced whenever I'm around him._

Leon cocked an eyebrow at the starry-eyed stare he was receiving from Cloud. "That made a certain somebody who 'didn't want it' very happy," he observed in that I-could-careless voice of his.

"Shut up," Cloud mumbled as he grabbed a wash cloth, soaped it up, and then turned his back to Leon so he wouldn't be able to see his blush.

The brunette glanced at the blonde, watching him wash himself. "Well," Leon began in a sarcastic tone, "my work here is done." He kissed Cloud on the cheek, left the shower, and exited the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, leaving his friend to wash himself alone.

- - - - -

A platinum blonde man walked down a dark alleyway, casually slashing heartless as he went; he had other things on his mind besides flipping out over the not-so-new heartless that had been bothering him for years. Like Sora. He hoped that he was doing better today. His heart had only piercingly ached once that day opposed to the consistent pain he daily dealt with, so maybe Sora was doing better? _I'm not sure whether or not I should be happy about that_. Of course he wanted his best friend and the love of his life to be happy, but what if Sora was getting over him? Then what would Riku do without the light of his life to live for? He sighed, turning a corner as he killed another heartless. _Who am I kidding? Sora doesn't like men_. But maybe, just maybe, he could get Sora to feel more than just friendship for him; perhaps he could actually get his heart mirror Riku's exact emotions. Maybe...

Well, if anything, he had to hurry up and get back to Destiny Islands before his spiky-haired friend actually _did_ get over his absence. He had been traveling for three days now and he was so very close to seeing his best friend. If his calculations were right, he should be at Destiny Islands by day four, tomorrow, and he couldn't wait to see Sora's smile and hear his laugh again.

* * *

**Author's notes: **So, how did you all like this chapter? You better appreciate it! I actually edited fifteen pages just to improve it. Sorry if it takes me forever to complete and upload chapter two; I do have a life outside of writing, y'know. I love reviews and I thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedule to read Savior! See you all in chapter two. 


	2. The Great Escape

**Author's notes: **Well, I've finally updated! I'm sorry it's taken me so long. I sincerely hope you enjoy this chapter, as I've worked very, very hard on getting it out to you guys. And remember to review! Constructive criticism welcome, flames are not. It's not that they bother me, it's just I don't see the point in giving one, seeing as how it will be totally ignored. But whatever, if you feel you must, then do whatever you want. (Oh, and, I don't know what's up with all the t.A.T.u. songs being used. XD I just think they have some real good forbidden, angsty love type songs that go really well with Savior!)

**Disclaimers: **Square Enix and Disney own Kingdom Hearts. t.A.T.u. owns "Sacrifice".

**Warnings: **This fanfiction contains yaoi, adult humor, violence, sexual situations, angst, fluff, and foul language.

* * *

_Can you tell me softly  
__How you'll always haunt me?  
__Can you help me,  
__Hold me?  
__Come to me now, slowly,  
__You caress me smoothly.  
__Calm my fears and soothe me,  
__Move your hands across me,  
__Take my worries from me._

_I will sacrifice,  
__I will sacrifice  
__All I have in life  
__To clear my conscience._

_I will sacrifice,  
__I will sacrifice  
__All I have in life,  
__Sacrifice, sacrifice._

_Can you feel me solely,  
__Deeper still and wholly?  
__With your understanding  
__And your arms around me,  
__Can you help me,  
__Hold me?  
__Whisper to me softly,  
__Move your hands across me,  
__Take my worries from me._

_I will sacrifice,  
__I will sacrifice  
__All I have in life  
__To clear my conscience._

_I will sacrifice,  
__I will sacrifice  
__All I have in life,  
__Sacrifice, sacrifice._

_I will sacrifice,  
__Will sacrifice,  
__Will sacrifice,  
__Will sacrifice._

_I will sacrifice,  
__I will sacrifice  
__All I have in life  
__To clear my conscience._

_I will sacrifice,  
__I will sacrifice,  
__All I have in life,  
__Sacrifice, sacrifice._

**Sacrifice **– t.A.T.u.

-

-

**_Savior  
_Chapter two  
The Great Escape**

-

-

Sora sighed exasperatedly as he walked up the stairs leading to his house, groping the insides of the pockets of his swim trunks in search of his house key. His hand emerged an instant later with a keyring that had various unimportant knickknacks attached, and he thrust the one he needed into the door's keyhole. He twisted the copper object to the right and pushed open the heavy wooden door. Sora started up the stairs, closing and bolting the door behind him.

The spiky-haired teen rushed into his bathroom, stripping himself of his swim trunks as he went, and hurried into the shower. He hated taking two showers in one day, but he had just gotten back from the beach, and there was no way in hellhe was going to smell like salt water when Leon and Cloud got there. Sora turned the knob to the left and hastily reached for his shampoo bottle, not wanting to waste any time. After squeezing the substance into his hand and lathering the substance into his hair, he ducked under the showerhead, allowing the running water to wash it all out. Making sure that all of the shampoo was out, he reached for the bar of soap and began running it along his body; he didn't even have time to grab a washcloth.

After rinsing off all of the soap, he turned the knob back to the right and stepped out of the shower. With a towel wrapped around his prominent hips, he practically ran back into his room and knelt before his bureau,opening up the bottom drawer in search of something to wear. He figured that he shouldn't dress too casual since it would be the first time that he got to really see Leon and Cloud in years, but he also didn't want to be formal, either; after all, they were old friends, not strangers.

Furrowing his eyebrows and biting his lower lip nervously, he glanced at the digital clock set on his nightstand – 6:50. _Oh, shit._ Heart fluttering with panic and anxiety, Sora began to furiously search his drawers for a decent outfit, finally decding on a white beater, faded blue jeans with holes in the knees, and a white dress shirt. Casual yet formal, just right for the image that Sora wanted to project.

No sooner had he finished dressing did he hear the doorbell ring. Sora took one last look in the mirror and attempted to tame his hair by smoothing the almost-dry spikes against his head, only to have them bounce back up again. Shrugging defeatedly, he hurried down the stairs and rushed to the front door. He could see storm clouds gathering through the window, Leon and Cloud standing in front of the dark sky in a melodramatic sort of way. He felt his pulse quicken at the sight of the Gunblade expert. _He looks… great._ After releasing one last shaky breath, he unbolted the padlock, slowly turned the brass knob, and opened the door to reveal none other than Squall Leonhart and Cloud Strife.

At the sight of Cloud, Sora immediately perked up, happy and excited that he actually had a chance to hang out with his old companion again.

The blonde man, though, had felt contempt for Sora because he had taken Leon away from him many a lonely night – he had only come due to Leon's "kindness" in the shower – but he felt bad now when he saw how excited Sora was to see him. It wasn't Sora's fault that Leon wanted to see him so badly, right? The cinnamon-haired teen wrapped his arms around Cloud in a bone-crushing hug. The guilt-ridden man meekly returned the sweet, naïve hug the teen was so energetically giving him.

"Cloud!" Sora shouted gleefully, forgetting his Leon troubles for the time being.

"Sora…!" he attempted to feign excitement and hoped that it was convincing; Cloud had never really been much of an actor.

Leon stood off to the sidelines as he watched the little reunion between the two, smirking at Sora's love shown to Cloud. He knew how badly the blonde had wanted to stay at the hotel due to his dislike for Sora, and it was amusing in a sick sort of way to watch him act, quite horribly might I add, as if this were the happiest moment of his life.

After giving Cloud one last peck on the cheek, the cinnamon-haired teen released his death hold around Cloud's neck and stole a nervous glance in Leon's direction. Should he hug him, too? Leon caught the stare that Sora was giving him, and he held his gaze for a moment, giving the teen an odd look. _No,_ Sora decided, smiling and waving awkwardly, _too weird._

"Hey, Leon," he greeted lamely. "Long time no see."

_Be cool, Leonhart,_ the older man thought to himself as he crossed his arms in what he hoped was a careless fashion. _Be cool._ "I just saw you this afternoon," Leon replied nonchalantly in his smooth way of speaking as he glanced behind Sora's shoulder and into his house. An awkward silence followed his cool response and the keyblade master visibly winced, offended by the remark, as he tried to think of something witty to say back.

"How 'bout a tour?" Leon suggested, leaving himself open to a snide remark from the teenaged boy.

Now was his chance – "But Leon," Sora began sarcastically, "you just saw it this afternoon." A coy smiled formed on Sora's lips as he looked cockily into Leon's narrowed eyes. The sound of Cloud's stifled laughter reached the older brunette's ears, but Leon caused him to fall abruptly silent again with just a glance in his direction. Unable to think of a comeback, he just trudged into the house, too annoyed to wait for the resident to admit his entrance.

"Squall!" Cloud called and grabbed Leon's arm, trying to pull him back.

"It's _Leon_," the Gunblade Expert corrected through gritted teeth and yanked his arm away. Sora just giggled as he led the way inside.

- - - - -

A dark, hooded figure stuck his head around the corner of the deserted hallway he currently found himself in, ignoring the loud, almost violent, beating of his heart as he did so. He released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding when he found that it was empty. Silently, he crept through the narrow corridor and slowly but surely made his way to the door. Riku had gotten so far, he could not and _would_ not ruin it now by getting caught. He had worked far too hard to fuck it all up now.

Upon arriving at the end of the hallway, he quietly pulled out his keyblade and pointed it directly at the door's lock, causing the door to open and a "click" to echo throughout the otherwise quiet corridors. Wincing at the sudden noise, Riku waited a few moments for it to be completely and utterly silent before continuing on.

_This is it, Riku,_ he told himself, trying to be brave. _No turning back now. If you're caught, they send you back._ He couldn't stop the shiver that ran through his spine and prickled his neck, knowing how coveted he was amongst the nobodies(1) after his escape from Kingdom Hearts. He knew that there was quite a large reward offered in exchange for his capture – dead or alive. _But if they don't catch you,_ he reminded himself, _then you see Sora again._ Swallowing hard, he wrapped a gloved hand around the brass knob, turned it to the right, pushed it open and…

Found a staircase.

Riku sighed exasperatedly at the sight, having already climbed so many stairs to get to where he was now. _For Sora,_ he thought and quietly he began his long climb up the spiral staircase.

When he arrived at the deserted tower, Riku's relief was so much that he felt as if he could collapse on the floor and cry and cry and cry and cry tears of thanks. But there was no time for that, and he still had to be quiet, lest somebody in the giant castle hear noise coming from the tower and come up to investigate.

Hurrying across the room, he put his hand on the door and was about to push it open when he heard a voice on the other side. _Shit!_ His eyes quickly scanned the room for a possible hiding place and stopped on what appeared to be a storage closet. _That'll have to do._ Riku rushed silently over to the closet and stuffed himself inside, careful not to make any noise in doing so. He made sure he left the door open ever so slightly, just as he had found it, before he got completely settled in.

Now all he had to do was wait.

- - - - -

"Who wants to play…" – a dramatic pause added for good measure – "_DIDDY KONG RACING?_"

Leon's eyebrows raised at the teenager's idiocy. "'Diddy Kong Racing', Sora?"

A triumphant nod. "Yes, Diddy Kong Racing!" He held up an N64 game with a challenging smile on his lips.

"Oh, I do!" Cloud shouted and bounced up and down on the bed excitedly. "I am the _King_ of Diddy Kong Racing!" Leon gave his blonde friend a disapproving look as Sora jumped on the bed to join them. _What is the world coming to?_

"Who _are_ you?" he asked, his question directed at Cloud as he shook his head in a disbelieving fashion.

"Oh, c'mon, Squall," the blonde jived, "don't be such a spoiled sport. Diddy Kong Racing's fun! It's the best video game in the history of video games. Right, Sora?" As if Leon would be caught dead playing a game called "Diddy Kong Racing" – thanks, but no thanks.

Sora nodded his head vigorously in agreement. "Give it a chance," he pleaded with the stubborn man. "Do you even know what Diddy Kong Racing is?"

"No," Leon admitted, "but with a name like 'Diddy Kong Racing', I'm sure that I wouldn't want to play even if I did."

Sora frowned. He had forgotten how close-minded Leon could be at times. "Please, Leon?" he all but begged as he grabbed one of his hands and began tugging.

"For the millionth time, _no_," was his wavering response, but his tone wasn't as firm as it had been before. Cloud noticed that he was beginning to cave and immediately followed suit and tugged at his other hand, trying to get him up.

"C'mon, Squa – Leon," he quickly corrected himself, not wanting to change his mind by calling him the wrong name. "Just one race."

The Gunblade expert sighed as he decided on going downstairs and playing the damned game just to shut them up. "Fine," he grumbled, earning a "Yay!" from Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb as they helped him off of Sora's bed.

- - - - -

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a cruel voice stirred Riku from his slumber. "So sorry to wake you – Riku, I believe it is."

"Huh…?" He blinked a few times and looked up from his crouching position on the floor into dark, lifeless eyes; the eyes of a nobody. Immediately the silver-haired teen was on his feet and as alert as ever. _Shit, how the hell could I have fallen asleep?_

"Sleep well?"

Aqua eyes narrowed hatefully as he placed his hand by his hip, readying himself for a fight. "I did, actually," Riku spat, his words oozing with venom, "thanks for asking."

The nobody's pale lips twisted into a curt smile. "Don't mention it." Without another word, he slowly raised his slender arm and made quite a show of snapping his fingers, a large group of another type of nobody appearing immediately following the action. Before Riku had a chance to act, the leader spoke one final time. "Kill him." And with that, he vanished into thin air, leaving his precious nobodies to do the dirty work for him.

Riku defiantly glared into the shadows of where the nobodies' eyes would've been, had they had any, and drew his keyblade. The enemies were still for just a moment, the calm before the storm, and suddenly the nobodies charged at the silver-haired wielder as he swung his keyblade out in front of himself, killing a very small portion of the swift army. More of the metallic creatures jumped onto the teen, but he threw them off and slashed through them with one smooth swipe of his keyblade, exterminating another smaller fraction of the nobodies.

Before Riku had a chance to catch his breath, another one had already surprised him from behind. Wrapping its legs around his waist, the nobody's cold arms quickly snaked their way around his neck and slashed the right side of his elegant face, leaving a sharp, stinging cut in its wake. Yelping in pain at the sudden, unexpected attack, Riku threw the creature across the room, knocking a few others over in the process. As he turned around to face his enemies, more of the creatures lunged at him and they pushed him to the ground, smothering him, and the worn out teen slashed aimlessly, trying and hoping with all his might that he at least took a few of them out.

With each nobody that piled on top of Riku, suffocating and slashing at him, his will to live slightly diminished and was left a little less than it had been before. His body ached something awful, and his drowsiness was so much that he almost wanted his enemies to successfully carry out their orders and put him out of his misery. The agility in which he swung his keyblade began to slow, and he could feel his eyelids starting to close, too. _What's the point?_ he thought as he gradually allowed himself to fall deeper and deeper into the seemingly endless abyss that so invitingly beckoned him.

_'Don't give up! C'mon, Sora! Together, we can do it!'_

'Okay!'

Even in the most hopeless of times, Sora always trusted me. Always believed in me.

'Now, Sora! Let's close this door for good!'

'Close it, quick!'

'But…'

His face had looked so sad when I was on the opposite side of those doors. He didn't want me to go. He's been crying for years, desperately clinging onto hope that someday, I'll be there again.

'I miss you, Riiku…' Tears always being shed for my sake, for my absence.

No… I'm not going to let him down! I can't! I _won't!_

Just when Riku had given up all hope, the memories of his best friend caused his eyes to snap open, and he was instantly pulled back to reality. His grip on the keyblade in his right hand tightened, and he felt a mixture of complete and utter hope, strength, and faith course through his body.

_For Sora!_

The silver-haired teen flung himself into the air, spewing the nobodies this way and that way, only to destroy the airborne monsters on his way back down. Upon his landing, Riku then proceeded to sprint across the small room, severing anything that got in his way, and when he reached the opposite wall, he pointed his keyblade at the lock. Hearing the expected "click" that followed, he burst through the door and into the forbidden room, his eyes frantically searching for the port key(2). His search didn't last long before he found what he was looking for; spotless sterling links formed a sparkling chain connected to a silver crown pendent secured tightly in the center, glittering marvelously in the moonlight that flooded through an open window in the isolated tower. _So beautiful._

Riku, however, did not have time to admire its beauty, and he grabbed the priceless necklace off of the work desk and turned to run, port key clutched in one hand, keyblade readied in the other. He raced through the neighboring room and down the spiral staircase as fast as his legs would allow, skillfully cutting through the attacking nobodies with ease. As he rushed through the empty corridors and down yet another staircase, he could vaguely hear sirens echoing behind him, alerting the others of his escape from the castle. The teen growled in annoyance at the panic and alarm as he skipped right over the last set of stairs, jumping over the railing instead.

He honestly did not see what the big deal was about. It's not like he was a border at this castle or anything of the sort, so what's with the alarms and sirens? Yeah, there was a large reward for the capture and return of him to Kingdom Hearts, but would it really be worth all of the trouble that they were going through just to catch him?

_Hell yes._ The obvious answer, to his dismay.

A pack of nobodies awaited the teen boy's arrival on the ground floor. _Fuck._ Trying his hardest not to get worked up over the annoying setback, he did the only thing he could do: attack. Riku lunged at the army, wildly swinging his keyblade, destroying everything that came his way. He slowly but surely made his way through group after group of determined monsters until he reached the back door. Sweaty, with a fresh cut on his forehead and old wounds reopened on his aching body, his breathing ragged and uneven, his shaky hands unlocked the door.

Just as he opened it, a higher form of nobody appeared at the end of the Great Hall, cursing and shouting as he ran at lightning speed in Riku's direction. Oh, shit. The silver-haired boy immediately exited the castle, closing and locking the heavy door behind himself, as he ran toward the ocean.

He ran and ran and ran and ran, not allowing himself to look back, not allowing himself to see his enemies bursting through that door and chasing him, hot on his trail. No, because if he did that, then he wouldn't make it. And that was something that he just could _not_ allow, not after coming this far.

And then, finally, Riku reached the water; the waves sparkled in the moonlight as they crashed against the shore, and he allowed himself to rest a moment as he took it all in.

After a minute, his breathing returned to normal and he felt as if he was ready for the long swim he had ahead of himself. Throwing his keyblade into the sand and placing the port key chain around his neck, Riku turned around for one final time to see three men just arriving on the scene. _That's my cue._ And with that, he pulled off his cape and his pants, diving into the sea with only his boxers and an undershirt on, ignoring the faint shouts and curses that echoed in the distance. 

- - - - -

"Oh, what-what!" Sora danced around the living room, basking in the glory of his eleventh win against Leon and Cloud. "Who's the king now, Cloud? _Who's the king now?_"

Leon's eyebrow visibly twitched as he glared at the bouncing teen. "Didn't you say 'just one race', Cloud?"

Mako blue eyes clouded in anger as they landed on Sora, who twirled around the coffee table a third time. "Yes, Squall," he growled, "I believe I did."

Their heads slowly turned to each other and gray eyes met blue ones as the two exchanged a knowing nod. "On the count of three," Leon instructed.

_"Who's the masta! Who's the masta!"_

"1…" One of Cloud's fingers went up.

_"Sora is, Sora is!"_

"2…" Two of Leon's did the same.

_"Oh, yes he iiiiis, yes he iiiis!"_

"3!"

The two men pounced at Sora, earning a yelp from the teenaged boy as he jumped back, just barely escaping the crazed fighters' clutches. "Hey!" he yelled, hopping onto the couch, dodging another double team attack. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Shutting you up!" shouted Cloud as he grabbed at his legs and firmly held them in a tight grip, giving Sora no way to escape. "C'mon, Leon!" He pulled Sora's legs out from underneath of him and the cinnamon haired teen landed with a soft thud on the cushioned sofa. Leon and his partner in crime pounced on the young man, using their secret strategy on the not-so-innocent victim.

"_TICKLE ATTACK!_"

"_Noooo!_" was all Sora could protest before he was cut off by his own laughter. 

- - - - -

Thirty minutes had gone by before the wrestling young men had grown tired enough to stop and rest. Correction: before Sora had grown tired enough to stop and rest. The only reason that the two grown men had finally decided to lay off the teenager is because he swore up and down that he would let them burn Diddy Kong Racing. (Little did they know that he kept a spare upstairs in his room, strategically hidden beneath a pile of old magazines under his bed…) Leon and Cloud had told Sora to wait inside and rest while they busied themselves in the backyard, hurriedly collecting twigs and grass for the Diddy Kong Racing execution they wanted to perform before the storm arrived, leaving the brunette alone with his thoughts.

_Tonight has been great. Cloud's a lot funner than I remembered him. And Leon… He's still as cold and stubborn as ever,_ he thought with a smile. _Not like this morning,_ Sora's silly grin was gone just as quickly as it had come, and he was suddenly very serious. He could hear distant echoes of thunder in the distance, warning that the expected storm was on its way. _He was kind this morning. At first he was a little cold, I won't lie… But then, he was so warm, and comforting when I was crying over… Riku…_ The beginnings of tears formed in his eyes, but he quickly and violently wiped them away, frustrated with himself. _What the hell is wrong with me? All I ever do is cry anymore! Why can't I smile when I think of my best friend…?_ Rain began beating down hard on the windows and rooftop. The cinnamon-haired teen choked back a sob as he buried his face in the sofa pillow, welcoming the violent sounds the raindrops made as they splattered against his house.

Why did he always have to cry when he thought about Riku? Shouldn't he smile fondly when he looked back on all those memories that he shared with his best friend? _I mean, if Kairi can do it, then why can't I?_ The sound of the back door slamming and approaching footsteps interrupted his thoughts.

"Hey, Sora!" called Leon as he walked through the kitchen and to the living room. "Man, the rain is really coming down out there—Sora?" They had walked into an empty room. "Sora!" No answer.

"Hm," muttered Cloud curiously as he walked over to the kitchen doorway. He turned back around. "That's weird. Maybe he's in the bathroom?"

Leon stared at him a moment before replying. "…Maybe," he finally mumbled, but the Gunblade expert had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that told him otherwise. "I think he might've gone to find Riku." The cracked front door confirmed his suspicions.

"Riku…?" Cloud repeated. He had to admit, the name did sound familiar. "Wait, isn't he that kid that Ansem possessed?"

The brunette didn't respond. Instead, he rushed to the door, swung it open – "C'mon, Cloud!" – and began running in the direction of the beach, the confused blonde man trailing after him. 

- - - - -

Sora ran as fast as his legs could carry him. He ran past all of the houses, all of the shopping centers, and all of the schools. The cinnamon-haired teen raced through the pouring rain, the only one outside except for the occasional stray cat here or there. After what couldn't have been more than a minute, he finally arrived at his destination: the beach. His fingers fumbled with the buttons on his dress shirt as he threw a nervous glance over his shoulder, knowing that Leon had already figured out what he was doing. After he freed himself of his overshirt, he pulled his white beater over his head and let it drop on the wet sandy ground beneath him. With lightning speed, Sora unzipped and unbuttoned his jeans, and he practically jumped out of them as he rushed towards the freezing cold water that lay ahead of him.

He stole one last look over his shoulder to make sure he was safe, and upon finding that he was still alone, Sora dove head first into the sea, swimming as fast and as hard as he could against the rough and raging ocean currents.

Thoughts of Riku swirled around in his head as his legs kicked and his arms dipped, pulling Sora in the direction of the play island he had shared with his friends years ago. Why he was going there now, he didn't know. The teen hadn't been there since he had fought the Shadow heartless four years prior; that was the night he had gotten sucked into that dark vortex and ended up in Traverse Town, where he met Leon, Donald, Goofy, and the rest of the gang.

The eighteen-year-old was caught off guard as he faced a head-on collision with a giant tidal wave, causing him to swallow a mouthful of saltwater, but he wouldn't let that deter him. If anything, it had only caused his determination to soar and he swam harder and faster against the rough currents.

Thanks to Sora's perseverance against the harsh ocean waters, he had arrived at the abandoned island within two minutes' time. The brunette hadn't swam that hard or that fast in a long time; not since he and Riku used to race each other years ago, before all this "darkness in every heart" bull shit had come along and changed everything. He wished more than anything that he could go back living the way he used to; back to that carefree lifestyle he had so foolishly taken for granted.

As soon as one foot stepped onto the sandy floor, the other one immediately joined it and he took off in the direction of "Riku's island". The one with the papou tree, the one that the bridge was connected to, the one with more memories of his best friend than any other spot on that tiny island. He jumped onto the small piece of land that lay directly opposite Riku's island, and he ran across the connecting bridge. His legs carried him as fast as they could, the rainwater violently washing away the tears that spilled from his eyes, and he reached the end.

He had arrived at Riku's island.

The cinnamon-haired boy began to look around, waiting in anticipation for something else to happen. Waiting for some life-changing event to occur…

Any minute now.

And yet, despite Sora's expectations, nothing happened. No special incident, no amazing occurrence, no revelations suddenly being revealed. No nothing.

At this, Sora began to sob. He did not know what he had expected to happen, but he certainly didn't think that _nothing_ would come out of his sudden reappearance at the abandoned play island. After all, he had felt the sudden need to just be there like gravity, or something very close to it, was pulling him in, and that wasn't something that happened everyday, right? The brunette collapsed against the paopu tree, his shoulders shaking heavily as he allowed his hysterics to take over. "Where are you, Riiku…?" he cried softly as he pulled his knees close to his chest and covered his head with his arms.

The sound of barefeet scrambling against the sopping wet bridge was not heard over the crackling thunder and violent rainfall. A gentle yet eager voice softly whispering the name of an old friend, however, managed to reach the sobbing brunette's ears.

"S…Sora?"

His head immediately snapped up upon hearing his name pronounced by the familiar voice. "Riku…?" Shocked sapphire eyes met glistening aqua ones and Sora immediately rose from his sitting position on the wet sandy floor. A flash of lightning, an echo of thunder, and the two friends were together for the first time in years. Sora's arms wrapped tightly around Riku's strong torso, the older teen's arms were placed comfortably around the younger teen's neck, and the brunette rested his head on his older friend's chest, contentedly listening to the strong heartbeat he heard there.

"Sora…" Riku breathed the name shakily, his lean fingers stroking Sora's wet locks. The torrent of tears that escaped his eyes were invisible, courtesy of the rain, and he tried in vain to calm himself down.

The younger of the two just buried his head deeper into his chest. "Riku, I missed you so much!" Sora sobbed and pulled him closer, tightening his death grip around the older teen's waist. "I thought I would never see you again! I was so worried, Riku! I was so scared…!"

Hearing the words that escaped Sora's mouth made him cry even harder. One hand wrapped around his shoulders, the other stroking the brunette's silk-like hair, Riku buried his own head in the nape of Sora's neck. "I know, Sora…" he managed to choke out between his sobs. "I know." Arms still wrapped securely around Riku's waist, Sora's fingers began stroking the small of his older friend's back soothingly.

"Riku…" Sora whimpered through his tears, pulling him closer still.

The two friends remained like this for some time – sobbing, holding each other, lovingly whispering soothing nothings into the other's ear. Finally, Riku felt as if he had regained his composure enough to speak. He wanted to tell Sora just how much he had missed him, just how much he really loved him. How the thought of seeing Sora's beautiful face again was the only thing that had kept Riku going for the past four years. Summing up all of his courage, the silver-haired beauty slowly, hesitantly, lifted his head from the nape of Sora's neck. The younger teen followed suit, also lifting his from Riku's comfortable chest.

The storm's ferocity slowly began to evolve into a calm drizzle.

"Sora, I really missed you…" Riku admitted as he cupped Sora's face in his right hand, his thumb softly stroking his babysoft cheek. "But not how you think… I mean, in a different way than you missed me… Not in a bad way, it's just…" – a hesitant pause – "it's just that, well, I lov—" The feeling of soft, warm lips engulfing his own stopped him mid-rant, causing his heart to stop and his eyes to grow wide at the sudden, unexpected advance. Before Riku had a chance to respond to the beautiful yet childlike kiss, Sora's lips were gone just as quickly as they had come. "Sora…?" _Did he just… kiss me?_ It had all happened so fast that Riku wasn't sure if it was a reality or not.

_Did I just… kiss him?_ "Uh, Riku, I—"

"Sora!"

The two boys' heads turned to the shore, the direction in which the shout was heard. "Leon?" Sora realized for the first time that both he and Riku were half-naked, and suddenly felt very embarassed and awkward.

"What the **fuck** is your problem? In the middle of a fucking _monsoon_, Sora, a _monsoon_, me and Cloud find the living room empty with you nowhere in sight! Do you know how _worried_ we were?" _You mean how worried _you _were,_ Cloud thought bitterly.

Aquamarine eyes narrowed at the furious words the Gunblade expert was throwing at his Sora. "Excuse me, _Leon_," Riku spat the name as if the very sound of it had left a bad taste in his mouth, "what the fuck is _your_ problem? Where do you get off—"

"Uh, Leon!" Sora quickly cut Riku off, wanting to avoid any altercations between the two stubborn young men at all costs. "Why don't you and Cloud just go back to your hotel room? I mean, we've all had a rough night and I think a some rest would really do us all a world of good." When the only response he got from Leon was a glare in Riku's direction, he quickly turned to the blonde for support, adding, "_Right_, Cloud?"

Cloud quickly detected the obvious hint that Sora was giving him. "Uh, right!" he agreed as he hurriedly grabbed Leon's arm and roughly pulled him in the direction of the boat they had hadhijacked in order to get there. "C'mon, I can tell that you're way beat. Let's just go to bed and we'll deal with this whole thing in the morning. Sound good to you, Squall?"

"_Leon_," the brunette man seethed through gritted teeth, shoving the blonde off, but he nonetheless found himself getting into the small boat, anyway.

* * *

(1)Nobody: For those of you who haven't played Kingdom Hearts 2, when somebody loses their heart, they become a nobody, which is only half a person. Since they lack a heart, they also lack regular human emotions and all that good stuff.

(2)Port key: Harry Potter, book four, "The Goblet of Fire". A port key, from what I remember (I haven't read the book in years), is an object that is able to transport you from one place to another. In the book, it immediately took you to your destination when you touched it, but in this fanfiction, in order for the port key to work, you need to take it to a specific place. ("The specific place" being wherever the port key was programmed to take off from.) For example, Riku's port key was programmed to take you from that ocean to Destiny Islands waters. Kapeesh?

**Author's notes: **Well, I got a little lazy with the Sora-Cloud-Leon visit scenes, but seriously, there was nothing _real_ to put there, y'know? (Not until the end of the visit, anyway.) So, instead, I just used 95 of the visit for some comic relief in an otherwise angsty and serious chapter! But it's okay, because there will _definitely_ be more to come with Leon and Cloud, and, of course, Leon and Sora, and Sora and Riku. ;) It's just in this chapter, I wanted to focus more on Riku than anything else. So, yes. Just sit tight until chapter three! I promise that it won't take me so long to update next time. Until then, review and encourage me to work hard! XP


End file.
